• PATRONS: Did you know we've a chat function for you now? Look to the bottom of the screen, you can chat, set up rooms, talk to each other individually or in groups! Click 'Chat' at the right side of the chat window to open the chat up.
  • Love Gotmead and want to see it grow? Then consider supporting the site and becoming a Patron! If you're logged in, click on your username to the right of the menu to see how as little as $30/year can get you access to the patron areas and the patron Facebook group and to support Gotmead!
  • We now have a Patron-exclusive Facebook group! Patrons my join at The Gotmead Patron Group. You MUST answer the questions, providing your Patron membership, when you request to join so I can verify your Patron membership. If the questions aren't answered, the request will be turned down.

Orange Cinnamon mead

Barrel Char Wood Products

irkman

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 23, 2017
9
0
0
Recipe:
5Lbs New England local wild flower honey
2 Oranges
water to make 1 gallon
1 stick cinnamon
Yeast EC-1118
1/2 tsp Fermaid K
1/4 tsp diammonium Phosphate

Primary Ferm:
starting Gravity 1.135
Honey and water mixed

First nutrient addition: Day 1
Added ¼ tsp fermaid K
Added 1/8 tsp diammonium phosphate

Second nutrient addition: 8 days after start gravity 1.1
Added 1/8 tsp of fermaid K
Added 1/16 tsp diammonium phosphate

Third nutrient addition: 27 days after start gravity 1.05
Added 1/8 tsp of fermaid K
Added 1/8 tsp of diammonium phosphate

Secondary Ferm: 57 days after start gravity at 1.022
Racked onto Cinnamon stick and two oranges sliced


Racked off cinnamon and oranges 15 days later for a total of 73 days on 3/29/18.
Bulk aged to present 1/22/19 Final gravity 1.022


This mead has been my best mead yet and I found that keeping a detailed log is very helpful. The aroma from the mead is delightful consisting of strong honey up front with very subtle notes of orange which I feel may be over powered by cinnamon. The taste of cinnamon is stronger than I was going for and I feel it over powers the orange taste. I do not smell or taste any obvious fussels. Overall this mead is very drinkable and I will be enjoying it soon without guilt as it is over a year old...

I would like to make another mead similar to this that has a more obvious orange taste with cinnamon as a supporting flavor. I do not feel I used enough oranges and I feel I can back off the amount of time the cinnamon is in the mead by racking them in separate installments? any thoughts?
 

Squatchy

Lifetime GotMead Patron
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Nov 3, 2014
5,542
261
83
Denver
Recipe:
5Lbs New England local wild flower honey
2 Oranges
water to make 1 gallon
1 stick cinnamon
Yeast EC-1118
1/2 tsp Fermaid K
1/4 tsp diammonium Phosphate

Primary Ferm:
starting Gravity 1.135
Honey and water mixed

First nutrient addition: Day 1
Added ¼ tsp fermaid K
Added 1/8 tsp diammonium phosphate

Second nutrient addition: 8 days after start gravity 1.1
Added 1/8 tsp of fermaid K
Added 1/16 tsp diammonium phosphate

Third nutrient addition: 27 days after start gravity 1.05
Added 1/8 tsp of fermaid K
Added 1/8 tsp of diammonium phosphate

Secondary Ferm: 57 days after start gravity at 1.022
Racked onto Cinnamon stick and two oranges sliced


Racked off cinnamon and oranges 15 days later for a total of 73 days on 3/29/18.
Bulk aged to present 1/22/19 Final gravity 1.022


This mead has been my best mead yet and I found that keeping a detailed log is very helpful. The aroma from the mead is delightful consisting of strong honey up front with very subtle notes of orange which I feel may be over powered by cinnamon. The taste of cinnamon is stronger than I was going for and I feel it over powers the orange taste. I do not smell or taste any obvious fussels. Overall this mead is very drinkable and I will be enjoying it soon without guilt as it is over a year old...

I would like to make another mead similar to this that has a more obvious orange taste with cinnamon as a supporting flavor. I do not feel I used enough oranges and I feel I can back off the amount of time the cinnamon is in the mead by racking them in separate installments? any thoughts?

I'm glad you liked it. Congratulations.

First suggestion would be to get up to speed on your YAN calculations, your feeding schedule ( yours has some significant flaws) rehydration protocol. And adjuncts amounts or process. You should have pulled out the stick when you got to where you wanted it. Why didn't you? ANd. If you would have added orange zest after you stabilized it. You could have boosted the orange presentation 5 fold.

If you follow modern protocols. Your stuff will be drinkable in the first couple months. Obviously it will mature over time. But I have won several medals with meads that are 3-4 months old.

Go listen to the podcast that start on 9/5/17

Oh. And welcome to the community ;)
 

irkman

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 23, 2017
9
0
0
Thanks for the recommendations. I have gone through the yan calculations and have seen the error in my ways.

I removed the cinnamon stick after tasting, however it seems the cinnamon flavor increased over time post removal. Is that a thing or did I maybe miss some? Or did I misjudge the cinnamon taste and how would age?


I actually never stabilized this Mead and need to do so before bottling. Can I still add the zest after stabilizing? I never saw the video where zest was added post Ferment. How much and how long do I add it for?

Did I add enough oranges to my secondary or should I have added more? Zest may be a great way to up the presentation on citrus meleomels, but how does this work for say a raspberry melomel where you can't zest? Is juice an option to up the presentation of a melomel after ferment?
 
Last edited:

Squatchy

Lifetime GotMead Patron
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Nov 3, 2014
5,542
261
83
Denver
You should alsways have extra of all the adjuncts you make your mead with still left over so you can adjust your mead after it's stabile. If you don't save any for later, you are stuck with no way to add more if it needs some. A fermentation is never finished just because it ran to zero and has been stabilized. This is actually where you start the process of making it great.

As for post adds. Most things are added post. And better yet. I would advise a new mead maker to wait until the mead is close to clear before they start this proces. If it's full of lees in suspension. You will have a hard tiome judging how much flavore you have in there becasue it's so yeasty tasting. This may be how you missjudges your cinamon add. It doesn't usually get any stronger when it's added. But maybe as it got cleaner, the cinamon seemed to get stronger if the competing yeasty flavors stared to subside.

I can't tell you if you had enough orange up front. Only you can tell yourself that. You may like it different than I do. It seems as that would be the case beacuse you want more, right?

How much should I add and for how long? Don't take offense here. It's a too common question. And has become an irratant to me. Just add some. If it gets to what your looking for remove it. If it's not getting there add more. And then remove it when it's where you like it. It's thatr simple ;)
 
Barrel Char Wood Products

Viking Brew Vessels - Authentic Drinking Horns